Alice looks to grow community involvement

Julie Silva/Caller-Times
Trash is piled up in an alley behind Newberry Street in Alice. City officials announced Friday a community effort to clean up the area.

ALICE - In the days after gunfire erupted on Escobar Street in July, Lydia Resendez was inundated with phone calls from friends and family asking about her welfare.

"I'm fine," she told them, "that was all down the street."

Resendez, who has lived on the street for seven years, said she has never dealt with burglaries and her neighbors look out for one another; they mind their own business for the most part but have no problem picking up a package for safekeeping if it's dropped off when someone isn't home.

Still, she said, an initiative by the city called Growing Great Neighbors will improve community relations.

Mayor John Lemon and city administrators announced the program Friday morning. Employees from code enforcement, police, fire, public works and solid waste departments are hitting the streets to educate residents about city codes, clean up the community and try to improve relationships between city officials and residents.

They'll start in the area from Martin Luther King Jr. Road to Johnson Street and Gloria to Monterrey streets. It includes Escobar Street.

Code enforcement officers have canvassed the area and sent letters to residents in violation of city code. Many violations had to do with litter, trash, tires, loose animals and junk cars. In a few weeks, they'll come out and help with enforcement and pick up brush.

Just across the street from Resendez's maintained yard and home is an empty lot with weeds nearly 6 feet tall. She said she welcomes the cleanup effort.

"I'm sure that if it looks cleaner it won't be an attraction for the hide-outs," she said.

That's exactly what city administration hopes to accomplish.

"We want to work with them to take back their neighborhoods," City Manager Ray De Los Santos said. "When you've got a well-lit neighborhood where police officers have a presence, it makes it more difficult to conduct criminal activity."

As a part of that effort, Police Chief Daniel Bueno said his department wants to revive neighborhood watch programs. They'll be looking for leaders in each neighborhood to get involved and be a point of contact between their neighbors and city staff.

Officers will look for people to host meetings with their neighbors and law enforcement assigned to the area.

Resendez said she'd love to get involved with a neighborhood watch. She said she expects the criminals to move out of the area if they know the residents are keeping an eye on them and are in contact with the police.

"We should mind our own business, but not when it comes to crime," Resendez said.